Pacific scholars Deveni Temu, Prue Ahrens and Sioana Faupula explore the personal and historical accounts of lives lived with the sea, from early Indigenous populations and European venturers to contemporary travellers.

The history of trade, shipping, tourism and migration between the Pacific islands and Australia is explored by historian Jonathan Ritchie as part of Voyages of the Pacific Ancestors: Vaka Moana exhibition.

The presence of objects from Tahiti in museums across the world is examined by historian Jenny Newell. She discusses the representations of Tahiti over the years and suggests how museums might renew Tahitian exhibitions and collections.

Historian Lissant Bolton considers the nature of Captain James Cook’s fame in a museological context and discusses how difficult it is to present artefacts from the Pacific in an exhibition without reference to Cook’s three voyages.